I loved the fresh marjoram in this Whole Wheat Orzo Salad with Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives, Feta, and Herb Vinaigrette and this tasty salad is low-glycemic, meatless and South Beach Diet Phase Two. Use the Recipes-by-Diet-Type Index to find more recipes like this one.

In the early days of summer, garden vegetables are still just a promise of things to come, so I always get a little infatuated with my herbs, which are raring to go. I'm always looking for ways to use the uncommon herbs I don't have as many recipes for, and a few years ago I was excited when my sister Sandee introduced me to Marinated Tomato Salad with Parsley and Marjoram Dressing. Of course, there are no tomatoes from the garden yet, but when I spotted this orzo salad with Marjoram Vinaigrette in the June 2003 issue of Bon Appetit, I hoped it might be another winner using marjoram, and it was!

I do think you could make this Whole Wheat Orzo Salad with Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives, Feta, and Herb Vinaigrette with basil or fresh oregano if you don't have marjoram, but if you have marjoram in your garden that needs to get out more often, give it a try!

The hardest part of making this salad for me was finding whole wheat orzo, which I finally located at Whole Foods.

I washed the marjoram well in the salad spinner and spun it dry, then chopped it finely to go in the vinaigrette.

Bring 2 quarts water to boil in a large pot, add a generous amount of salt, then add orzo and cook at a low boil for exactly 8 minutes. (Or check your package for cooking time if not using whole wheat orzo.) Drain the orzo and let cool while you prep other ingredients.

Wash marjoram (or other herbs) and spin dry or dry with paper towels, then finely chop enough to make 1 T + 2 tsp. chopped herbs. Zest the skin of a lemon and measure 1 tsp. lemon zest. Mix together the lemon juice, lemon zest, and Dijon mustard, whisk in the olive oil, then stir in 1 T chopped marjoram.

Put drained and cooled orzo into a medium-sized salad bowl. Add crumbled Feta, sliced green onions, and Kalamata olives, then add all but 2 T of the herb vinaigrette and gently stir the mixture together. Let sit at room temperature while you prep tomatoes.

Cut tomatoes in half, combine with the other 2 T of dressing, and let the combined salad and tomatoes marinate separately for 15-30 minutes. To serve, stir tomatoes with vinaigrette into the salad, add the 2 tsp. chopped marjoram, and gently combine. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper and serve immediately.

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Stunning salad Kalyn, I love everything about it... whole wheat orzo, olives and especially addition of fresh marjoram! I must admit it does not look like the marjoram I know from Poland, leaves are much bigger than I know.

The whole wheat orzo was so great in this; I loved it. I did ruin one batch by cooking too long, but now I am more careful with the timing. And while I hate to advertise Whole Foods too much (I get sick of their prices!) they are a good source for this kind of specialty item.

Add my vote in favor of whole wheat orzo. Whenever I see it in the store, I stock up because it can be hard to find. But, it's so easy to prepare, and and so great to have that added fiber and nutrition.

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